The London-based Nautical Institute today announced a new collaboration with The Seafarers’ Charity to develop a new range of training courses aimed at improving the leadership and management skills of seafarers and those working ashore.
Increasing reports about bullying, harassment and abuse onboard, and its impact on the work experience and mental health of seafarers, have driven this new collaboration between the two maritime charities – both of whom are interested in improving working life at sea.
This new collaboration aims to enhance leadership and management skills, and to promote a shift in cultural expectations about acceptable workplace behaviours onboard. It is anticipated that, over time, this may lead to a reduction in unacceptable behaviour onboard and, consequently, an improvement in the mental health and welfare of seafarers.
A leading voice in the maritime industry, The Nautical Institute has a well-established track record in developing training courses that support mariners in their Continuing Professional Development. They have joined forces with The Seafarers’ Charity, a leading grant funder of maritime welfare services, to support the development of three new training courses for seafarers which will be accredited by the Institute of Leadership and Management. Launching in Summer 2023 the new training courses include:
- Leadership & Management (levels 3 and 5)
- Coaching & Mentoring (levels 3 and 5)
- Welfare Toolkit aimed at enhancing resilience.
Deborah Layde, Chief Executive of The Seafarers’ Charity, said: “If we want a culture of care to become the norm for people working at sea, then we need to support an enhancement of leadership skills at sea. Training is an important part of this as it helps seafarers to understand what good leadership looks like. This will support a behavioural and cultural shift in expectations of standards of leadership. Ultimately, this will improve the lives of people working at sea as everyone will benefit from more positive interactions and good leadership which challenges unacceptable behaviours.”
(Image from Nautical Institute)
